Latest news with #MatthewPodolsky
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Prosecution Plans To Use 911 Call From Alleged Diddy Burglary In Los Angeles During Trial
Diddy is a few weeks away from his trial for racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking, and more alleged crimes, and another piece of the prosecution's strategy has been revealed online. They plan to use the audio from a 2011 phone call to 911 detailing how the 55-year-old artist allegedly broke into one of his victims' homes in Los Angeles. 'Because this call was made shortly after discovering the break-in… Individual 2's statements are nevertheless admissible because they were made close in time to when he observed the break-in at his home,' AllHipHop reported via Acting U.S. Attorney Matthew Podolsky. Per the prosecution, the phone call conveys the alleged victim's mental state and point to the Bad Boy co-founder running a full criminal operation. The government also plans to have the controversial mogul's former employees testify against him, as well as introduce text messages and phone recordings as evidence of his misconduct. The prosecution believes this will prove that his former employees were forced to work for him and aid his criminal enterprise. 'At trial, the Government anticipates introducing multiple statements made by the defendant's employees,' Matthew Podolsky added. 'Those statements will be offered as exhibits (including text messages sent by the defendant's employees and recordings of the defendant's employees), as well as through the testimony of witnesses. These statements cover a variety of different topics, but they all center around the employees' core job responsibilities of serving the defendant.' Another element of the prosecution's strategy is requesting that the court restrict Diddy from using prior statements until they meet specific legal exceptions. Their hope is the defense cannot use anything that will alter how his character is viewed, or suggest that the charges against him are related to anything political or retaliatory. Diddy's trial will begin on May 5, adding a new chapter to a long and difficult journey for both the rapper and his alleged victims. His ex-girlfriend, Cassie, will take the stand and will testify using her real name, as opposed to testifying anonymously. She has been a key aspect of this entire ordeal as she filed the first rape lawsuit against the 'Last Night' artist in November 2023, and footage surfaced of him assaulting her in 2016 last May. More from JAY-Z Rape Accuser Files For Defamation Lawsuit To Be Dismissed BBC To Release 'P. Diddy: The Rise And Fall' Documentary Diddy Seeks To Ban Cassie Assault Video From Trial, Claims It Will "Mislead" Jury
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Yahoo
Trump admin files first racketeering charges against massive migrant terrorist group present in U.S.
The first RICO racketeering charges against members and associates of the migrant terrorist group Tren de Aragua were filed this week in New York. A statement by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York said that the case is part of "Operation Take Back America," which it said is a "nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Justice Department to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime." According to the statement, the charges filed against 27 alleged current and former Tren de Aragua (TdA) members include human smuggling, sex trafficking and murder. "Today, we have filed charges against 27 alleged members, former members, and associates of Tren de Aragua, for committing murders and shootings, forcing young women trafficked from Venezuela into commercial sex work, robbing and extorting small businesses, and selling 'tusi,' a pink powdery drug that has become their calling card," announced Matthew Podolsky, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York. President Trump Blasts Courts For Getting In The Way Of Deportation Agenda Podolsky said that the indictments "make clear that this Office will work tirelessly to keep the law-abiding residents of New York City safe, and hold accountable those who bring violence to our streets." Read On The Fox News App The charges were filed in two separate indictments, the first against six alleged current members of Tren de Aragua and the second against 21 alleged members and associates of a splinter gang known as "Anti-Tren," which consists of former TdA members. The Trump State Department has designated Tren de Aragua, as well as several other migrant gangs present throughout the U.S., as foreign terrorist organizations. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York said that 21 of the 27 alleged gang members and associates are currently in federal custody. The statement said that 16 were already in federal criminal, immigration, or state custody and five were arrested over the last couple of days. Ohio Sheriff Defends New Ice Partnership: 'Just Doing The Right Thing' Most of the alleged gang members are in their twenties, with the oldest being 44. Many are facing multiple life in prison sentences if they are found guilty. Charges include racketeering, sex trafficking, alien importation, drug trafficking and carjacking conspiracy, robbery, illegal firearms possession and use and extortion. Click Here For More Immigration Coverage Among the most egregious of the charges included in the indictments are the smuggling of "multadas" – indentured sex workers – from Venezuela into Peru and the U.S. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office statement, both TdA and Anti-Tren operate keep the multadas trapped in a life of sex slavery by threatening to kill them and their families and by assaulting, shooting and killing them and tracking down those who attempted to flee. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi commented on the RICO charges, saying: "Today's indictments and arrests span three states and will devastate TdA's infrastructure as we work to completely dismantle and purge this organization from our country." Gorsuch, Roberts Side With Left-leaning Supreme Court Justices In Immigration Ruling "Tren de Aragua is not just a street gang," said Bondi. "It is a highly structured terrorist organization that has destroyed American families with brutal violence, engaged in human trafficking, and spread deadly drugs through our communities." New York Police Department Commissioner Jessica Tisch also praised the operations, saying that "for the first time ever, TdA is being named and charged as the criminal enterprise that it is." "This gang has shown zero regard for the safety of New Yorkers," said Tisch. "As alleged in the indictment, these defendants wreaked havoc in our communities, trafficking women for sexual exploitation, flooding our streets with drugs, and committing violent crimes with illegal guns. Thanks to the dedicated members of the NYPD and the important work of our federal partners, their time is up." The U.S. Attorney's Office statement also mentioned that this case received significant support from Joint Task Force Vulcan, a collection of U.S. attorneys' offices and law enforcement agencies that was created in 2019 to eradicate the Salvadoran gang MS-13 and has now expanded to target Tren de article source: Trump admin files first racketeering charges against massive migrant terrorist group present in U.S.
USA Today
23-04-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
DOJ hits Tren de Aragua gang members with RICO charges for murder, sex trafficking
DOJ hits Tren de Aragua gang members with RICO charges for murder, sex trafficking Show Caption Hide Caption Trump administration deports 17 to El Salvador CECOT prison The Trump administration sent 17 alleged Tren de Aragua and MS-13 members to El Salvador's notorious CECOT prison. More than two dozen people who federal prosecutors say are current or past members of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang have been charged in connection with racketeering, sex trafficking and drug trafficking conspiracies in the New York City area. The Justice Department announced two indictments that charged alleged gang members with a litany of crimes such as murder, robbing and extorting small businesses, forcing women trafficked from Venezuela to be sex workers and selling a "pink powdery drug," said Matthew Podolsky, acting U.S. attorney for the southern district of New York. He added that the drug, called pink cocaine, is the gang's calling card. 'As alleged, Tren de Aragua is not just a street gang – it is a highly structured terrorist organization that has destroyed American families with brutal violence, engaged in human trafficking, and spread deadly drugs through our communities,' Attorney General Pam Bondi said. The Department of State designated Tren de Aragua as a foreign terrorist organization in February. Twenty-one of the 27 charged are in federal custody, the Justice Department said. Five were arrested recently in New York State and other states. Bondi added that the arrests will "devastate" the gang's infrastructure. Six people believed to be members of Tren de Aragua were charged with violating the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. The group, stylized as TdA, started as a prison gang in Venezuela and grew to a "transnational criminal organization" led by Hector Guerrero Flores, the Department of State said in July. The gang is believed to be active in the U.S., Chile and Peru. Under Flores' leadership, the gang has controlled gold mines in Bolivar and drug corridors on the Caribbean coast and in border crossings between Venezuela and Colombia. Related: What is Tren de Aragua? What to know about Venezuelan gang targeted by Donald Trump New York City Police Department Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Tren de Aragua is being charged "for the first time ever" as a criminal enterprise. "This isn't just street crime — it's organized racketeering, and this gang has shown zero regard for the safety of New Yorkers," Tisch said. "As alleged in the indictment, these defendants wreaked havoc in our communities, trafficking women for sexual exploitation, flooding our streets with drugs, and committing violent crimes with illegal guns." Six TdA members charged with RICO Act crimes According to court papers, Tren de Aragua maintained its power through murders, assaults, robberies and threats of violence. Federal prosecutors said many of those threats and acts were carried out against those allied with Anti-Tren. The six charged are: Jarwin Valero-Calderon, also known as 'La Fama;" Samuel Gonzalez Castro, also known as 'Klei' and 'Kley;' Eferson Morillo-Gomez, also known as 'Jefferson' and 'Efe Trebol;' Brayan Oliveros-Chero; Sandro Oliveros-Chero; and Armando Jose Perez Gonzalez, also known as 'Biblia.' Federal prosecutors said the six charged smuggled Venezuelan women into Peru and the United States, and then forced them into becoming sex workers to pay off debts they owed to the gang. Tren de Aragua members have violently coerced the women into remaining as sex workers, according to federal prosecutors. Violence included killing or assaulting the women, kidnapping anyone who tried to flee and threatening to harm their families. The Justice Department said that the six men are also charged with a drug trafficking conspiracy for transporting controlled substances like "tusi" into the country. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration said tusi is a compound substance called pink cocaine that produces hallucinogenic effects. The actual compound doesn't always have cocaine in it, despite its name, but the DEA says the compound can be a mixture of ketamine, methamphetamine, fentanyl, xylazine and methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA). "Pink cocaine is dyed pink to distinguish it from other substances such as cocaine and methamphetamine. The distinct pink color comes from food dye or colored baking powder," the agency said. Rival Anti-Tren members, associates face RICO charges According to court papers, 21 people charged include members or associates of Tren de Aragua's rival, Anti-Tren. They face prosecution for violently exerting their power in the NYC metro area from 2022 to 2025 through murder, assaults and threats. The charges were issued under the RICO Act. A number of the Anti-Tren defendants and codefendants Wilfredo Jose Avendaño Carrizalez and Carlos Gabriel Santos Mogollon were charged with sex trafficking, drug trafficking, obstruction of justice, firearms offenses and conspiracy to import and harbor immigrants, according to court papers. In one instance, federal prosecutors wrote that Velasquez-Hurtado attempted to prevent law enforcement from executing a search warrant in the winter by biting the officers. They added that Anti-Tren operated similarly to TdA in that they wielded violence to keep human trafficking victims under their control, trafficked controlled substances like pink cocaine and illegally obtained firearms and ammunition. Contact reporter Krystal Nurse at knurse@ Follow her on X @KrystalRNurse, and on BlueSky @
Fox News
23-04-2025
- Fox News
Trump admin files first racketeering charges against massive migrant terrorist group present in U.S.
The first RICO racketeering charges against members and associates of the migrant terrorist group Tren de Aragua were filed this week in New York. A statement by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York said that the case is part of "Operation Take Back America," which it said is a "nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Justice Department to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime." According to the statement, the charges filed against 27 alleged current and former Tren de Aragua (TdA) members include human smuggling, sex trafficking and murder. "Today, we have filed charges against 27 alleged members, former members, and associates of Tren de Aragua, for committing murders and shootings, forcing young women trafficked from Venezuela into commercial sex work, robbing and extorting small businesses, and selling 'tusi,' a pink powdery drug that has become their calling card," announced Matthew Podolsky, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Podolsky said that the indictments "make clear that this Office will work tirelessly to keep the law-abiding residents of New York City safe, and hold accountable those who bring violence to our streets." The charges were filed in two separate indictments, the first against six alleged current members of Tren de Aragua and the second against 21 alleged members and associates of a splinter gang known as "Anti-Tren," which consists of former TdA members. The Trump State Department has designated Tren de Aragua, as well as several other migrant gangs present throughout the U.S., as foreign terrorist organizations. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York said that 21 of the 27 alleged gang members and associates are currently in federal custody. The statement said that 16 were already in federal criminal, immigration, or state custody and five were arrested over the last couple of days. Most of the alleged gang members are in their twenties, with the oldest being 44. Many are facing multiple life in prison sentences if they are found guilty. Charges include racketeering, sex trafficking, alien importation, drug trafficking and carjacking conspiracy, robbery, illegal firearms possession and use and extortion. Among the most egregious of the charges included in the indictments are the smuggling of "multadas" – indentured sex workers – from Venezuela into Peru and the U.S. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office statement, both TdA and Anti-Tren operate keep the multadas trapped in a life of sex slavery by threatening to kill them and their families and by assaulting, shooting and killing them and tracking down those who attempted to flee. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi commented on the RICO charges, saying: "Today's indictments and arrests span three states and will devastate TdA's infrastructure as we work to completely dismantle and purge this organization from our country." "Tren de Aragua is not just a street gang," said Bondi. "It is a highly structured terrorist organization that has destroyed American families with brutal violence, engaged in human trafficking, and spread deadly drugs through our communities." New York Police Department Commissioner Jessica Tisch also praised the operations, saying that "for the first time ever, TdA is being named and charged as the criminal enterprise that it is." "This gang has shown zero regard for the safety of New Yorkers," said Tisch. "As alleged in the indictment, these defendants wreaked havoc in our communities, trafficking women for sexual exploitation, flooding our streets with drugs, and committing violent crimes with illegal guns. Thanks to the dedicated members of the NYPD and the important work of our federal partners, their time is up." The U.S. Attorney's Office statement also mentioned that this case received significant support from Joint Task Force Vulcan, a collection of U.S. attorneys' offices and law enforcement agencies that was created in 2019 to eradicate the Salvadoran gang MS-13 and has now expanded to target Tren de Aragua.
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
US charges 27 alleged Venezuelan gang members
The US Justice Department on Monday announced it was charging 27 people accused of being connected to Venezuelan drug gang Tren de Aragua with an array of serious crimes, including drug conspiracy, sex trafficking and murder. Acting US Attorney for New York's Southern District Matthew Podolsky said those charged included alleged members, former members, and associates of Tren de Aragua," a gang designated by US President Donald Trump as a "foreign terrorist organization." Of the 27 defendants, 21 were in federal custody and five more were arrested Sunday and Monday in New York and other jurisdictions, the statement said. The charges include murder, shootings, human trafficking of women into sex work, extortion and drug trafficking, the department said. Tren de Aragua became a high-profile target of law enforcement under the Trump administration after the president declared the group a "terrorist" organization and invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, saying the United States was facing an "invasion." Since then, Trump has sent two planeloads of alleged members to a prison in El Salvador on March 15 -- a case that led to a standoff with US courts. Attorneys for several of the deported Venezuelans have said that their clients were not members of Tren de Aragua, had committed no crimes and were targeted largely on the basis of their tattoos. Despite facing challenges, the US Supreme Court lifted a lower court order barring the deportations on April 7, handing Trump a long-sought political victory. The court did note, however, that the deportees must be given an opportunity to legally challenge their removal -- a requirement that Trump has called unworkable. "We cannot give everyone a trial, because to do so would take, without exaggeration, 200 years," the US president said in a social media post on Monday. sla/aha
